Every June, we celebrate a new crop of graduates from our high schools heading out into the world. This June is different for me, however. Not only is one of those graduates my son, it's also a year where I have a high school reunion.
I'm having a hard time believing that he's graduating, just like I had a hard time when he finished elementary school. He's growing up, yet I've convinced myself my age stalled about 15 years ago.
I'm still trying to figure out why this huge kid with a deep voice and 5 o'clock shadow is calling me Dad.
I've made a point of telling him, as he studied for final exams and prepares for life after high school, to have fun. June of your grad year is a time you'll never forget. Once school is over, you'll gradually drift away from the people you have spent a lot of your life with up to now. You'll hang onto a few good friends after high school, while others will move or head in different directions. Chances are, after the Dry Grad on Friday, you won't see these people as a group until a class reunion. Believe me, I know.
This is a reunion year for my grad class, an opportunity to catch up with the people I spent so much time with when I was a teenager.
I dug out my school yearbook and flipped through the pages, reliving some old memories.
The drama and peer pressure that surrounds you in high school has long since faded, and all that remains is the fun we had in June of our grad year. It's the feeling of being old enough to be responsible, but with the protection of still being a high school student so others didn't expect as much from you. Just keep it legal, and the world was ours.
When it came time for the reunion, it was a little confusing. The people I saw in the yearbook had been replaced by what looked to be their parents. Who are all these people? The energy and excitement of Grade 12 had been replaced with maturity and experience of 30 years. My 30th reunion? That makes me... wholly crap, am I really that old?
The memories are deep and surface easily. Grad was an important time in our lives, a month we'll never forget. That's why I keep telling my son to enjoy this time, to cherish this time, because before you know it, it's 30 years later and you'll look back on this time as a highlight in your life.
Not to mention you are reminded of it at every reunion, so get the most out of it while you can. Just keep in touch with your parents, because no matter how old you are, we still worry about you.
To the class of 2013, I wish you the best for your future. To your parents, I congratulate you on raising a bright, successful child.
And to the Grad Class of '83, I look forward to seeing you at our 40th reunion. I just hope we'll recognize each other after another 10 years.
